Snubbed truck



March 24, 1953 Filed NOV. 12, 1949 w. L. SCHLEGEL, JR

SNUBBED TRUCK 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 IN VEN TOR.

Patented Mar. 24, 1953 SNUBBED TRUCK Walter L. Schlegel, Jr., Chicago, 111., assignor to American Steel Foundries, Chicago, 111., a corporation of New Jersey Application November 12, 1949, Serial N 0. 126,853

10 Claims. (01. 105-197) This invention relates to railway car trucks and more particularly to a novel means for snubbing oscillations of the truck bolster which supports the car body.

A general object of the invention is to devise a bolster damping or snubbing mechanism comprising relatively few parts of rugged construction and capable of long life in service.

A more specific object of the invention i to provide friction shoes engaging the truck frame columns, and to provide a spring associated with each shoe and so arranged as to positively prevent relative movement between the shoe and bolster during vertical and longitudinal oscillations of the latter.

A further object of the invention is to devise an arrangement such as above described wherein greater than usual friction resistance is afforded to oscillation of the bolster laterally thereof between the columns.

A more specific object of the invention is to house a friction shoe at each side of the bolster in complementary flat face engagement with one of the top and bottom walls thereof and with a substantially vertical transverse wall thereof, and to provide a spring compressed between the shoe and a portion of the bolster on a compressional axis sloping between the shoe and the bolster portion and diagonally arranged with respect to the longitudinal axis of the bolster to afford force components urging the shoe against the column, the transverse wall and the related top or bottom bolster wall, thereby affording unusually great stability for the bolster.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from a consideration of the following specification and the accompanying drawings wherein:

a Figure 1 is a fragmentary side view of a railway car truck embodying the invention, the left half of Figure 1 being a side elevational view and the right half being a sectional view taken in the *planes indicated by the line l-l of Figure 2;

' Figure 2 is a sectional view of the structure shown in Figure 1, the View being taken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a sectional view on the line 3-3 of Figure 2; and

Figures 4 to 6 illustrate one of the friction shoes, Figure 4 being a top plan view thereof, Figure 5 being an outboard end elevational view thereof, and Figure 6 being a view in elevation from the spring engaging face of the shoe.

: H Describing the invention in detail and referring -first to Figures 1 to 3, a side frame generally designated 2 comprising a compression member 4, a tension member 6 and spaced columns 8 defining a bolster opening 10, affords support in the usual manner for a group of bolster supporting springs l2 which seat against the bottom wall I4 of a bolster generally designated Hi. The bolster also comprises a top wall 18 and spaced side walls 20 having gibs 22 embracing each column 8 to guide the bolster it in its vertical movement within the opening it. As best seen in Figure 2, the gibs 22 are also effective to limit inboard and outboard movement of the bolster I6 relative to the columns 8.

Each side wall 20 of the bolster is cored away between the related gibs 22 to provide a friction shoe pocket 24 between the inboard and outboard substantially vertically bolster walls or webs 26 and 28 respectively, and a friction shoe 30 is received within each pocket 24 in frictional engagement as at 32 with a liner 34 secured in any convenient manner as by welding to the adjacent column 8.

Each friction shoe 39, as best shown in Figures 4 to 6, is substantially rectangular in form as seen from the front or rear face thereof and is generally triangular in form as seen in the top plan view of Figure 4 or the end elevational view of Figure 5. The front face of the shoe is provided with a substantially flat friction surface 36 (Figures 4 and 5) for frictional engagement as above described at 32 with the wear plate 34, and the outboard end of the shoe is provided with a substantially flat friction surface 38 approximately perpendicular to the surface 39 and adapted for frictional engagement as at 40 (Figures 2 and 3) with the related outboard web 28. The top of each shoe is provided with a substantially fiat friction surface 92 engageable as at 44 (Figure 3) with the flat under-side of the top bolster wall IS, the shoe surface 52 being approximately perpendicular to its friction surfaces 26 and 28. The inner or rear surface it of the shoe is provided with a spring seat 48 and a spring positioning boss 55 for the outer end of the spring diagrammatically indicated at 52 in Figures 1 to 3.

The inner end of the spring 52 is seated against a spring seat 54 integrally formed with the bottom bolster wall I4 and a center rib 55 extending longitudinally of the bolster approximately parallel to its side walls 29. The spring seat 54 is provided with a spring positioning boss 58 for the inner end of the spring 52 which is compressed between the spring seats 48 and 54 on a compressional axis extending diagonally outwardly from the longitudinal vertical center plane of the bolster l6 toward the wall 40 and extending diagonally upwardly from the seat 54 toward the seat 38 thereby affording force components urging the shoe into frictional engagement with the liner 34 and with the bolster walls 18 and 28 as above described.

It will be understood that if desired, the arrangement may be inverted with the compressional axis of the spring 52 sloping downwardly toward the shoe 3i], and if desired the spring 52 may be reversed to extend diagonally inboardly from the seat 54 toward the shoe 30, the primary feature of the invention residing in the arrangement in which the compressional axis of the spring slopes between the bolster and shoe spring seats 54 and 48 and also extends diagonally with respect to the longitudinal vertical center plane of the bolster, so that the shoe is tightly engaged with two substantially perpendicular bolster walls and with the column 8 by means of a single spring.

If desired, the top wall l8 of the bolster may be provided with a hole 58 adapted for the reception of a pin (not shown) which may be inserted into a complementary hole 60 in the top of the friction shoe 3%] when the holes 58 and fill are registered, thereby maintaining the friction shoe in retracted position until the bolster has been assembled as shown in the drawings whereupon the pin may be removed to accommodate actuation of the shoe by the spring 52 as above described.

I claim:

1. A railway car truck comprising a side frame with spaced columns having substantially parallel vertical friction surfaces, 2. bolster springsupported by said frame between said columns, said bolster comprising top and bottom walls and a friction pocket at each side thereof defined by inboard and outboard substantially vertical webs extending between said walls, a friction shoe in each pocket having complementary flat face engagement with one of the walls along an area approximately perpendicular to the related column surface, said shoe having complementary fiat face engagement with one of the webs along an area' approximately perpendicular to the firstmentioned area and to the related column surface, a spring seat on said bolster within each pocket and a spring compressed between each spring seat and the adjacent shoe on a compressional axis sloping between the seat and shoe and arranged diagonally with respect to the longitudinal vertical center plane of the bolster.

2. A bolster and friction shoe assembly comprising a hollow bolster with top and bottom walls, a substantially vertical center rib extending therebetween on the longitudinal vertical center plane of the bolster, said bolster having a substantially vertical surface between said walls disposed approximately perpendicular to said plane, a friction shoe engaging said surface and one of the walls, a spring seat integrally formed with said rib and the other wall, and a spring compressed between the shoe and seat on a compressional axis extending diagonally toward said surface and said one wall for holding the shoe thereagainst.

3. A railway car truck comprising a side frame with spaced columns, a bolster spring-supported by said frame between said columns, said bolster having substantially parallel top and bottom walls and having spaced webs connected between said walls approximately perpendicular thereto, friction shoes engaging respective columns, each shoe being engaged with one of the walls and one of the webs along approximately perpendicular areas, and springs compressed between the bolster and respective shoes, said springs diverging toward said webs and sloping from the shoe engaging walls.

4. A railway car truck comprising a side frame with spaced columns, a bolster spring-supported by said frame between said columns and having top and bottom walls, friction shoes engaging respective columns and one of the walls, said shoes also engaging bolster surfaces approximately perpendicular to said one wall, spring seats within the bolster, shoe actuating springs compressed between respective seats and the adjacent shoes, said springs diverging toward said surfaces as seen in top plan view and diverging toward said one wall as seen in end elevation.

5. A railway car truck comprising a side frame having spaced columns, a bolster spring supported between said columns, said bolster having top and bottom walls, friction shoes engaging respective columns and one of the walls, said shoes also engaging bolster surfaces approximately perpendicular to said one wall, and actuating means for said shoes comprising a pair of springs compressed between the bolster and respective shoes on axes diverging toward respective surfaces and sloping with respect to said one wall.

6. A railway car truck comprising a member with a column, another member movably supported adjacent said column, said other member having top and bottom walls and a substantially vertical surface therebetween extending toward the column, a friction shoe engaging said surface, said column and one of the walls, and a spring compressed between said other member and said shoe on a compressional axis extending diagonally toward said column, said surface and said wall.

7. A bolster and friction shoe assembly for a railway car truck comprising a hollow bolster having top and bottom approximately horizontal walls, a substantially vertical web therebetween, a spring seated against the bolster and arranged with its compressional axis extending diagonally toward the web and sloping toward one wall, a friction shoe engaging the spring and urged thereby against said web and said one wall, and means on said shoe and bolster engageable with associated pin means to retain the shoe and bolster in assembled relationship.

8. A railway car truck comprising a side frame with a friction surface, a bolster spring-supported by said frame adjacent said surface, a friction shoe housed within the bolster in engagement therewith along a substantially horizontal surface and a substantially vertical surface, both extending toward the friction surface, and spring means housed within the bolster for urging the shoe against all of said surfaces.

9. A railway car truck comprising a side frame with a friction surface, a hollow bolster structure supported by said frame adjacent said surface, a friction shoe within said structure engaging a pair of perpendicularly related surfaces of said bolster structure and also engaging said friction surface, and spring means compressed between the structure and shoe on an axis diagonal with respect to each of said surfaces for urging said shoe against all of said surfaces, one of said perpendicularly related surfaces being substantially horizontal.

10. A railway car truck comprising a side frame with spaced columns, a bolster structure springsupported by said frame between said columns, said structure having top and bottom walls, friction shoes engaging respective columns and one of said walls, said shoes also engaging vertical surfaces of said structure between said walls, said surfaces being disposed in a common plane perpendicular to the longitudinal vertical center plane of said structure, spring seats within said structure, and shoe actuating springs compressed between respective seats and the adjacent shoes, said springs diverging toward said surfaces as seen in top plan view and also diverging toward said one wall as seen in end elevation.

WALTER L. SCI-ILEGEL, JR.

6 REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

5 UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,365,198 Lehrman Dec. 19, 1944 2,446,506 Barrett et a1 Aug; 3, 1948 2,458,210 Schlegel Jan. 4, 1949 10 

